2002 ECHL MVP assigned to IceGators
October 6, 2002 - ECHL (ECHL)
Louisiana IceGators News Release
Lafayette, LA â The Louisiana IceGators have received 21-year-old goaltenders Frederic Cloutier and Kyle Kettles from the NHL's Minnesota Wild, IceGators head coach and vice president of hockey operations Dave Farrish announced Sunday. Cloutier was the 2001-02 ECHL MVP with the IceGators in his first pro season, while Kettles is a rookie out of the Western Hockey League.
Cloutier, 6-foot, 185 pounds, became the most decorated netminder in ECHL history last season, as he was also named League Rookie of the Year and Goaltender of the Year, and was also an All-Star and All-ECHL member and was selected to the All-Rookie team. The St. Georges, Quebec, native rewrote the league record books, compiling a 28-5-3 mark with an ECHL-record 1.84 goals against average and a .945 save percentage. Cloutier tied an ECHL record with seven shutouts despite playing in just 36 games, and sported an 11-game winning streak. Cloutier also had a team-record shutout streak of 161 minutes, 56 seconds.
"We are extremely pleased to have Frederic back with the IceGators," said Farrish. "Minnesota has a lot of depth in its goaltending department, so we are fortunate enough to have him come down here to continue to develop. Frederic has worked hard with Minnesota in the off-season and there's no reason to believe he can't be just as dominant this year."
Kettles, 6-foot-3, 185 pounds, was signed by the Wild this summer as a free agent. He was a seventh-round draft pick (No. 205 overall) of the Nashville Predators in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft. The Lac du Bonnet, Manitoba, native spent three seasons in the WHL, accumulating a 56-86-11 mark and a 3.76 goals against average. Kettles' numbers improved drastically last season, as he went 24-25-4 with a 3.11 goals against average and a .905 save percentage in 59 games with Moose Jaw after an early-season trade from Medicine Hat.
"Kyle is another young goaltender who is only going to get better," said Farrish. "Minnesota is very high on him. His numbers improved so much in his final junior season, just as Frederic Cloutier's did. Kyle's also a big goaltender who should give teams trouble."
Cloutier's final season in juniors with Shawinigan in 2000-01 (42-8-2, 2.50 gaa) was a marked improvement over his previous year with Acadie-Bathurst (16-34-6, 3.83 gaa). In 2000-01, Kettles was 15-24-2 with a 4.25 gaa in 47 games.
"We are excited once again to have two top-notch goaltenders," said Farrish, referring to last season's tandem of Cloutier and Marc Magliarditi, who had 26 wins apiece. "Frederic and Kyle are each just 21 years old and are going to be very exciting for our fans to watch."
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ECHL Stories from October 6, 2002
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